Automobile signaling appliance



A. FUJIWARA.

AUTOMOBILE SIGNALING APPLIANCE. APPUCATION FILED JULY 5.1917. RENEWED'SEPT. 20, 1920.

1,372,41 5. Patented Mar. 22, 1921.

2 SHEETS-SHEET I.

A. FUJIWARA.

AUTOMOBILE SIGNALING APPLIANCE' APPLICATION FILED JULY 5,1917. RENEWED SEPT. 20, 1920.

Iv all-I I UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ASA-I130 runwma, orwmmrnmmam'rona, omens.

AUTOMOBILE: SIGNALING AIPPLIANGE Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed lulyt lig 191 7, Sollalilfl'o. 1781748; Renewed; September-20, 1920. Serial Io; 411.561;

Toall whom it mayi concern; Be it known that I, ASAJIRO FUJIWAR of the city of; Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Automobile Signaling Appliances, of; which thefol lowing. is the specification.

The invention relates ,toa signaling apple ance for: automobiles? and the object of the invention isvto PI'OVldGgH simple attachment which can be readily; applied on the front; of an automobile and manipulated by the driver. to indicate, either by day or night the direction oftravellof the car thereby a1 lowing: an observer to determine the course of the car andthereby avoiding accident.

A further objectis toprovideanattachment wherebya driver can readily indicate to one controlling the traffic the direct on in which he :wishes to; proceed.

With the above general objects in VIEW the v nti ons t sen i l n the arran e enti nd onstr ction, t pe sth emef more particularly; described and later pointed 1, out r the appended claims, reference being i had to the accompanying draw- Ci thihi' figure lirepresents a a rear V ew of the complete e l eew Fig. 2 rrepresents an enlarged detailed vertical sectional j-vi evv i through tone end zof the as sfl ii iii eppranp i ishevi ei h lnt o k g-Pu s. i

Fig, 3 represents an enlarged detailed vertical sectional iewthrough the central p012 tion of the oas1ng of the appliance showing h te i erkins pa s-i Fig 4 represents an enlarged deta led vertical sectional view through the pa -mgnhe section being taken inthe plane denpted by the line X-Y-X' Fig.

Fig. 5 represents a horizontal sect onal view th ou hneeaa the casing, the section bein taken in the plane denoted by the line Y-- 2. f

Fig. fireprejsents fa. vertical sectional view throughbneyendof the casing, the section being taken in the plane denoted the line Z- +Z"Fig. 2. Fig. 7 represents an enlarged deta led horizontal sectional View through the central portion ofthe casing, the section pass ng through the hand wheel. FigIB represents a yie'vv of the hand wheeland a'djacent' sleevef';

sr l ev rti e t eheee i w inthe Province of In the drawings like characters of reference indicate corresponding parts in the several figures. v i

n 1 represents an elongated box like casing having the ends thereof terminatingin two upstanding extensions 2 and13 of a eculiar shape to accommodate parts later disclosed. This casing is designed: so that it can be mounted onfthe front end of an automobile such as the wind shield, in whichposition it isdesirable that the end extensions of i the casing appear at the opposite sides of thevvind shield.

The QXtGIlSlOIIfiQ and 3 house in eaohyinstance a side swinglngiindicator or pointer in thenature of a hand 4 and a front; swing-1 ingjndicatoror pointer in the nature of a hand 5 and these indicators are arranged so that they can be controlled in theirlswinging movement by the driver: of the CELT;

The hand 5 in each instance? is normally t contained Within the extension which isprovided j at the side with al side slit 6 to allow the hand to swing out, while the hand 5' is normally pocketed within the front side of the extension which is depressed u at 7 to -re;- ceive theghand n Eaoh' dicator i is mounted? on a cross shaft 8 having bearings inwthe side ofatho casing and on the shaft to the side of the hand Iimoimt; a partial gear 9 which cooperates with parts shortly desoribed to ma n1 ulatethe hand.

he hand 5 in each instance is mounted on a shaft 10 passing lengthwise of the; casing and suitably mounted therein 1 which shaft carries a combined operating and switch controlling ,lever 11 ex osed; to the; exterior of thecas n and fitte with; afinger piece 12 whereby t e levercan be readily manipus lated. e n Catches 13 and l4 are mounted on the casing and a engage with the lovers to prevent the same from moving until the catches are released as it Will be zobviousfromthe con-,

structi on shown that unlesssomethin'gof i this naturewas supplied the hands 5 could fall forwardly under the action ofgravity:

Centrallyof the; casing I locate a sleeve 15 in whichl mount rotatablya socket 161;

provided vvith anj extend-ingl 137 which terminates in a controlling hand wheel 18 located at the end of the sleeve. The socket has the opening therein square in cross section to receive slidably the square axle l9 of a controlling gear wheel 20 contained within the casing. A spring 21 is interposed between the outer end of' the sleeve, which is closed, and the socketwhich spring operates to hold the hub 18 of the hand wheel normally against the closed end of the sleeve and with the lugs 22 formed on-the end of the hub in receiving notches provided in the end of the sleeve.

According to this arrangement it will be obvious that under normal conditions the hand wheel as well as the gear will be locked against rotationbut yet the hand wheel can be turned to operate'the' gear wheel when wished.

ofthe casing and is provided more or less centrally with rack teeth 24 engaging with the teeth of the gear 20 and at the ends with rack teeth 25 and 26 which are adapted to engage with gear wheels 27 and 28 rotatably mounted oncross axles 27 and 28 carried by the side of the casing. The arrangement of the rack teeth 25 and 26 in respect to the gear 27 and 28 is such that when the rack bar is shifted in one direction the teeth 25 pass into mesh with the gear wheel 27 while those 26 pass away from the teeth of the gear 28 and vice versa.

29 and 30 represent further independent rack bars slidably mounted in the top part of the casing and provided adjoining the gear wheels 27 and 28 with rack teeth 29' and 30' and-at their 'outer' ends each with rack teeth 31 engaging with the teeth of the partial gears 9.

From the above disclosure it will be ob- VIOHS that if one turn the hand wheel in a clockwise direction the rack bar 23 will move tothe left and in moving will turn the gear wheel 28 but not that 27 and in turnmg the'gear 28 will move the rack bar 30 endwise and to the right and by so doing W111 cause the rotation of the partial gear 9 at the right hand end of the casing in a direction which will swing the hand l at the r1 ht hand end of the casing out and down.

11 order to arrest-any undue movement of the gears 27 and 28 I have provided arresting sprln 32 and 33 which play on 55 the surface of t e gears at all times.

A rack bar 23 is mounted in the underside go straight ahead he indicates this by swinglng down one or other of the hands 5 as the circumstance requires.

For use by night it is desirable to Illuminate the hands and this is done in the following way In the upper part of each extension an electric lamp indicated generally at 3st 1s inserted and suitable openings are provided in the extension to allow the lamp when illuminated to illuminate ahead and to the side provided the hands are down.

Two lead wires 35 and 36 pass to the casing from a suitable source of electromotive-force and the lights are wired in parallel across the mains. Push switches indicated generally by'the reference numerals 37 and 38 are mounted in the casing and inserted in the separate light circuits, thcsc switches allowing of the separate control of the lights.

In order to efl'ect the illuminating of the lights coincident with the manipulation of the hands I have supplied each of the rack bars 29 and 30 with a striker indicated at 39 and these strikers are designed in the movement of the rack bars to engage with and close the switches.

I have not considered it necessary to enlarge on the detail of what I have termed a push switch as this forms no part of in 1n ventioni Any kind of switch can be uti ized to close the circuit at the proper time and in the manipulation of the rack bars.

he switches just disclosed only operate to close the circuit when the hands are swung out. Other switches in circuit with the lampsand a sociated with the levers 11 are supplied so that when the levers are manipulated to throw down th hands 5 the lamps will be illuminated; Theseswitclies indicated at 40 are simply contact bars 41 inserted in the light circuits and adapted when engaged by strikers 42 formed as pait of the levers to close the light circuits.

At this point it is to be remembered that the hands 5 are swung down by pullin f the levers l1 outwardly and upwardly an ac cording to the arrangement shown best in Fig. 4 when the levers are in their upper position (see dotted outline Fig. 4) the strikers Wlll hit the contact bars and close the circuit.

en one is using my appliance in the day time the circuit will be opened by manipulating a main switch 4L3 (see Fig. 10) so that in the manipulation of the appliance the lights will not work. However, at night, by turningon the switch 43, one will have a light illuminated each time a hand is ma nipulated.

What I claim as my invention is 1. An automobile signaling appliance comprising a casing passing laterally across and the automobile and terminat-i ing and turning with the controlling wheel,

a rack bar passing lengthwise of the casing and having centrally disposed rack teet thereon engagin with the gear wheel and having rack teet located at the outer ends thereof, gear wheels rotatably mounted in the casing and meshing with the latter rack teeth respectively, a pair of rack bars extending lengthwise of the casing and provided with rack teeth engaging the latter gear wheels and provided at their outer ends with rack teeth entering the bases of the end extensions and partial gear wheels engaging with the latter rack teeth and secured to the hand like indicators.

2. A signal comprising an elongated casing having a vertical extension at each end,

a signal member pivoted in each extension,

and means for selectively operating said signal members comprising a toothed gear mounted in the casing between the extensions and provided with a square shank extending centrally from one side thereof, a sleeve extending outwardly from the casing and alined with said shank, a socket mem her receiving the shank therein and slidably mounted in said sleeve, a hand wheel car ried by the outer end of said socket member, resilient means engaging the socket member and yieldably holdin the hand wheel against the outer end of said sleeve, and

complementary locking means carried by thesleeve and said hand wheel whereby the latter is normally held against rotation and operative connections extending between said gear and each of said signal members.

Signed at Winnipeg, this 14th day of June, 1917. i

ASAJIRO FUJIWARA. 

